Domain migration
Your existing domain pointed at the new site with no lost downtime.
Scope of works
Website migration for trade contractors, moving your domain without losing what already works
Website migration for trade contractors means moving your domain, your content and your search rankings onto a new, managed site without disrupting the email or phone number your customers already have saved.
What it costs
- Plans$127 a month
- Build fee$697, after launch
- Live in7 days
- Revisions5 a month
- Domain and hostingIncluded
01 Client
Who is website migration for trade contractors for?
Trade businesses moving from WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, GoDaddy or an agency platform that want to keep their domain, email, rankings and links intact through the switch.
02 Symptoms
Signs your business needs this
- 01
You are worried a new site will lose your Google rankings.
- 02
Your domain is held by a past freelancer or agency.
- 03
Your email runs on the same domain and cannot go down.
- 04
You have old pages and links you do not want to break.
03 Sequence
How the work is done, step by step
- 01Audit the old siteEvery page, image, review and link worth keeping is listed.
- 02Map the redirectsEach old URL is matched to its new page for a 301 redirect.
- 03RebuildPages rebuilt in the new structure, with missing service and town pages added.
- 04Check email and DNSEmail records are reviewed before any DNS change.
- 05SwitchThe domain moves once you approve. The old site stays live until then.
04 Detail
What actually moves, and what does not have to
Your domain, your service and project content, and your search rankings are what a migration needs to protect. Email is usually handled by a separate provider from the website itself, so pointing your domain at the new site typically does not disrupt it, and we check your current setup during onboarding to flag anything that needs a small change before we touch DNS.
05 Detail
How the migration is handled
We register or point your domain, rebuild your content inside the new page structure, and set up redirects from every old URL, then run the DNS change at a low-traffic time to minimize any disruption during the switch.
Domain pointed or transferred with no downtime window left open
Email checked and preserved during the DNS change
301 redirects from every old URL
Existing photos and content carried into the new site
06 Detail
Why contractors migrate rather than start a brand-new domain
Starting a brand-new domain throws away years of accumulated search authority and every link pointing at your current address. Migrating your existing domain to the new, faster site keeps that authority working for you instead of starting the clock at zero.
07 Exclusions
What is not included
Knowing the edges of the job makes the rest easier to trust. None of these are part of this service:
- Importing your old theme, plugins or page builder.
- Keeping pages that no longer describe your business.
- Email hosting. We check your email records and leave your provider in place.
- Recovering a domain held by someone else without their cooperation, though we help with the transfer steps.
08 Client notes
What owners say about website migration for trade contractors
We knew the trade service requests document was a problem; we had just never prioritized fixing it. Staff now link to the precise section instead of wishing callers luck with a long document. Nothing was taken away from the people who like paper.
What they got Structured reference pages for trade service requests
My worry was the trade service requests page we had linked from years of emails. We reviewed the full redirect map before launch and checked the destinations ourselves. I could share the new site knowing the old links had been taken seriously.
What they got Page migration and redirect mapping for trade service requests
Want to see website migration for trade contractors for your business?
A 30-minute demo, on your screen, with the pages your trade would get. Plans from $127 a month; the $697 build fee comes after launch.
10 Deliverables
What you get with website migration for trade contractors
Email continuity check
Your current email setup reviewed before any DNS change.
Redirect mapping
Every old URL redirected to its equivalent on the new site.
Content carryover
Existing photos, galleries and reviews rebuilt into the new pages.
Managed hosting after the switch
Cloudflare hosting, SSL and CDN included from day one on the new site.
11 Guarantees
What happens if it does not work out?
You are covered where it matters: you never pay for a build you have not approved, and the two things we promise, speed and ranking, come with a fix rather than an excuse.
Build fee only after you approve
The $697 build fee is invoiced once your site is live and you are satisfied with it. Never before.
90+ PageSpeed, or we fix it free
On mobile and desktop, for the pages we build and host. If our work drops a page below it, we fix it at no charge.
Ranking within 3 to 5 months
If the site is not ranking for local searches in your area by then, we keep doing the search work at no extra charge until it is.
No yearly contract
Cancel by email at least 2 business days before your next invoice. The site runs to the end of the month you paid for.
Your domain stays yours
Registered in your name. If you leave, we transfer it at no charge and export your content within 14 days.
The conditions, plainly: the guarantees do not cover changes made by you or third parties, content published against our advice, or ranking outside your area and services. The remedy is the corrective work, not a refund: all sales are final except a duplicate or incorrect charge reported within 30 days. Full wording in the terms and refund policy.
12 Programme and cost
How long it takes and what it costs
Live in 7 days on Site Crew, 10 on Site Foreman and 15 on Site General, counted from the onboarding call. Revisions after launch are completed within 2 to 5 working days.
What drives the price
The same plans as a new build. Migration work is not billed separately.
The $697 build fee is invoiced only after the new site is live and approved.
Old hosting and plugin bills can end once the domain has moved.
13 Methods
Methods and tools we use
- Full crawl of the old site
- 301 redirect for every old URL
- Email record review before DNS changes
- Content rebuilt, not imported
14 Plan contents
Everything else that comes with the plan
This service is one part of a managed plan. Here is every line item, and which plan carries it.
| What you get | Site Crew$127/ month | Site Foreman$267/ month + usage | Site General$647/ month |
|---|---|---|---|
| The website | |||
| Custom-coded pages, 90+ PageSpeed guaranteedEvery page is hand built and served from Cloudflare's edge, with a 90+ Google PageSpeed score guaranteed on mobile and desktop. | |||
| A page for every service you runPanel upgrades, drain cleaning, mini-splits, stamped concrete: each service you name gets its own page and its own quote button. | |||
| Location pages for the towns you workA real page for each town, county or service radius you name, crossed with the services you run there. | |||
| Quote request tool built for your tradeA short form that asks what sizes the job first: job type, property, scope, timeline and photos. | |||
| Lead intake into your CRMEvery form and chat enquiry lands in the CRM, dispatch tool or inbox you already use, by direct API, Zapier or Make. | |||
| Compliance pages that come with the sitePrivacy policy, terms, a cookie policy with a consent banner that really holds back tracking scripts, and an accessibility statement, plus your license number where your state expects it. | |||
| Found on Google and in AI answers | |||
| Technical and on-page SEOClean page structure, one clear topic per page, titles, descriptions, internal links, a sitemap and fast pages from day one. | |||
| Answer-ready content (AEO)Answer-first copy, FAQ blocks and structured answers written so Google can lift them into featured snippets and voice answers. | |||
| AI-assistant readiness (GEO)An llms.txt file, consistent business details and plainly stated facts, so assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews can read and cite the site. | |||
| Schema markup (JSON-LD)Structured data for your business, services, FAQs and breadcrumbs on every page, so search and AI engines know exactly who you are and what you do. | |||
| Local ranking guaranteeIf the site is not ranking for local searches in your area within 3 to 5 months of launch, we keep doing the search work at no extra charge until it is. | |||
| Researched articles every weekArticles of 2,500 to 3,200 words, written for your trade and your area, with sources cited. | 2 a week | 2 a week | 3 a week |
| Hosting, updates and support | |||
| Managed hosting and securityCloudflare hosting with SSL, a CDN, DDoS protection and unmetered bandwidth, all inside the monthly fee. | |||
| Free domain, registered in your nameOne domain included while your plan is active, or we point the one you already own. It is yours if you leave. | |||
| Weekly detail updatesSmall real changes every week: new job photos, seasonal messaging, corrected details. | |||
| 5 revisions a monthAny change of any size, completed within 2 to 5 working days. Extra revisions are a flat $20 each. | |||
| Client portalOne place to request revisions, raise support tickets, send files and message the team. | |||
| Move from your old site with redirectsPages worth keeping are rebuilt, every old URL is redirected to its new page, and your email setup is checked before DNS changes. | |||
| The AI Engine | |||
| AI receptionistAnswers calls your team cannot pick up, takes the job details, books the appointment into your calendar and sends you a short call summary. | |||
| Site chat widgetAnswers common questions about your trade on the website, takes details and books appointments. | |||
| SMS and Messenger follow-upReplies to text messages and Facebook Messenger enquiries, follows up on new leads and books appointments. | |||
| Text messaging registration (A2P 10DLC) filed for youWe file the carrier registration business texting now requires, with the carrier fee passed through at cost. | |||
| Safe hand-off to a personThe AI never gives safety, code, licensing or professional advice. Anything that needs judgment goes to a person at your business. | |||
| The Content Engine | |||
| Social posts and reels3 social image posts and 2 reels a week, built from the same material as your articles. | 3 posts, 2 reels | ||
| Managed Google Business ProfilePosts, hours, service list and photos kept current on your Google Business Profile. | |||
| Live in | 7 days | 10 days | 15 days |
Site Foreman is $267 a month plus AI usage, billed monthly in arrears at what our providers charge us, with no markup.
Questions about website migration for trade contractors
Will our email stop working during the migration?
In most cases, no, since email is typically handled by a separate provider from the website. We check your specific setup during onboarding and flag anything that needs attention before we change DNS.
Do we need to buy a new domain?
No. We point your existing domain at the new site. If you do not yet own one, one domain is included free for as long as your plan is active.
How much downtime should we expect?
We schedule the DNS change to minimize disruption, and DNS changes typically propagate within a few hours, during which both the old and new site may briefly be reachable depending on location.
What happens to our old hosting account?
That is between you and your previous host; we recommend keeping it active for a short overlap period until the migration is fully confirmed, then you can cancel it.
Will my old site go down during the switch?
No. It stays live until the new site is approved and the domain is pointed across.
Do I keep my Google reviews?
Yes. Google reviews live on your Google Business Profile, not your website, so they are unaffected.
What if my old developer will not hand over access?
Tell us on onboarding. We rebuild from the public site and help you through the registrar's domain transfer steps.
Can you keep my URLs exactly the same?
Where a URL still makes sense we keep it; where the structure improves, we redirect. Either way, old links keep working.
16 Related scopes
Related services
See it built for your business
A live walk-through of the site you would get, in about 30 minutes. Plans from $127 a month, the $697 build fee invoiced only after launch, domain and hosting included.
Or email and a person replies within one working day.